In 2013, I wrote a journal post outlining more than 2 pages worth of things I desired in my life, all written in present tense.

On the list was:
“I live in a brightly (naturally lit) home, with sunny views, an outdoor patio with fruit trees and vegetable gardens. It’s completely private, calm, and I’m inspired at this home.” I also wrote down that the home has hardwood bamboo floors.
While I wasn’t specifically clear about the location of this house, I always kind of expected that the comfortable home environment in my description would to be closer to the Mediterranean Sea, closer to Italian gelato, German flower fields, and French cafes. Many of you are aware that I have desired to live on the European continent for years now, but life hasn’t yet moved in that direction. At the same time, I also trust in the timing of every opportunity in my life, and am especially open to opportunities that I haven’t even dreamed of.

And I was just given an opportunity I’ve never dreamed of!

Hawaii didn’t show up as a possibility for our next home until very recently, when all of a sudden, it became the EASIEST move for us to make.

Now Dylan and I will living on Maui beginning August 2017!

~ We have our tickets booked.
~ Once we move, we have a house waiting for us near the North Shore of Maui. It has EVERYTHING in the description of my ideal environment from back in 2013– papaya trees, trumpet flowers, an outdoor patio, and even bamboo flooring!
~ I will be able to grow vegetables, fruit, and flowers on this property, and reengage with plants in a way that I haven’t been able to at my current home.
~ Charlie the dachshund (the dog who opened my heart to little animals in a whole new way last year) will be living with us on Maui, and he will be such a good influence for Melon the mini dachshund as she adjusts to her new environment.
~ Since Dylan grew up on Maui, we have a community of friends and family already built in.
~ My little brother and brother Monks live just a couple Islands over, and I’ll be able to visit with them more often with a home base in Hawaii.

As with every life adjustment, I also recognize that I’ll have some opportunities to grow:
~ As an “Earth girl” who loves the smell of dirt and trees, I’ll need to get more comfortable in the water (currently, I rely on a pool noodle to hold me up while I snorkel, and I’m sometimes nervous when it comes to taking those first steps into the waves.) So, I gotta work on that.
~ I get to test if the business I’ve built can thrive no matter what location I reside in. Years ago, I set the intention to be location independent so that I could move anywhere that life pointed me to. I’ll still be training entrepreneurs over the phone, and I’ll also host some live events in Hawaii. It’s my hope to connect to conferences happening in the Hawaiian Islands, so that I can come in as a speaker to train on Turning Strangers into Paying Clients in 10 Days, Healthy Sales and Healthy Sales People, and several other presentations that I offer.
~ As I pack up, I will condense my material belongings into what can fit into a few boxes and a few suitcases. It means that I’ll be looking for loving new homes for many of my possessions (like my bistro table desk and some antiques), and I’ll also be selling the larger pieces of my artwork I’ve made, which should remain in a climate with lower amounts of humidity.

In preparation for the move, I’ll be taking many nostalgic tours through Washington State in the next couple months so that I can revisit special moments from my time growing up here – everything from “visiting Grandpa and Grandma’s house,” and eating at the Antique Sandwich Company with my Mom.

A huge thank you to Dylan (along with his family and friends), who are the connection to this passion fruit and rainbow filled opportunity in the middle of the Pacific ocean.

A woman who I had spoken with a few times throughout my 11 years in this community looked at me across the grocery store aisle.

It wasn’t a statement-question that I was expecting to hear on a morning when I needed organic lettuce and fruit. I didn’t have very long to respond to her words, but it got me thinking even more about money and our relationship to it. If she and I had 30 minutes to talk that day, rather than the 4 minutes in passing, here’s what I would have shared with her:

1. I make my own version of “good money,” which allows me to do the things in my life that are important to me. A million dollar home isn’t currently important, and neither is an expensive car. It means that I don’t have to make a level of money to support a high-end house or vehicle. (When I worked as a landscaper in college, the largest property I weeded was a $1.5 million dollar home – and it took A LOT of upkeep! It seemed like every day, a handy person, cleaner, or gardener was tending to the property.)

What IS important to me right now is the ability to travel, and to buy as much organic food as I want, without sticking to a food budget. At times when I didn’t have access to a lot of food, I longed to be able to eat without restraint (Thankfully, I was trained in nutrition and holistic health prior to the work I do now. It allows me to make healthful food choices that I actually CAN eat without restraint.)

2. Some of my clients earn more money than I do. (I love it when that happens!) And even if they do earn more money than I do, we still have conversations that help them advance in their business and finances. Their success doesn’t depend on me earning a certain amount. Each one of us has our own level of “good money” to reach ~ I have mine, and they have theirs.

3. I invest a substantial amount of my income back into mentors and training programs, along with a few astrological and psychic readings each year. I learn important things about my path and next steps from conversations with mentors, and I find the investments to be completely worth it. If you look at my yearly expenditures, about a third to a half of my income goes back into my education.

4. I’m not afraid to drain my bank account to $1 if it’s necessary, because I’ve learned that my account is not my value as a human being. In fact, you and I have probably communicated at a point where I had very little in my bank account after an investment. Even if that was the case, I’ll still got dressed in my best, did my hair, and confidently stepped forward in this world. I know that all of the money that ever comes to me is supposed to be circulated through purchases that I make. If an investment takes most of the money that I currently have stashed away, I trust that more income will flow in to make up for the hole.

5. If you were to ask some of my entrepreneurial clients what we talk about in our appointments, many of them will say, “Ava teaches about the energetics of money,” because that’s a big piece of what we do. I also teach them skills to turn strangers into paying clients in 10 days, find bliss in the midst of the sales cycle, and feed the source of their success.

6. Even though most of my clients are entrepreneurs, I’ve also worked with some really wonderful employed people, who have simply wanted to be happier at their jobs. And being happier at your job leads to pay raises, more opportunities to advance, and more feel-good chemicals floating through your body!

7. Many humans have conflicting thoughts about the topic of money. Some people desire to make a lot more money, but then they feel jealous or upset when other people earn more than they do. Many people have uncomfortable thoughts about money (“What will my friends think of me if I make more?” “Will my parents disown me if I out-earn them?” “Will people think I’m a rich b*tch?”) I used to feel a pang of jealousy when I saw friends and colleagues out-earn me. Now I’ve trained myself to celebrate their success. After all, if I am witnessing their advancement, it means I’m also attracting that kind of success into my life at this very moment.

If you desire to make your version of “good money” this year, I’d love to talk and see if I can be part of your happy support system. I’m getting ready to accept 2 wonderful humans into my Tapping the Bank of the Universe private mentoring program, which runs this spring. This is a 60-day journey where you and I will look at the energetic and practical ways to welcome more income. I especially love helping women develop the capacity to create money whenever they need it.

If you’d like to learn more, let’s arrange for a complimentary Making Money Feels Like Bliss appointment by phone or Skype, or in person in Olympia, Washington. This is one of the most affordable ways to hire me privately, and I expect the 2 spots in Tapping the Bank of the Universe to fill up quickly.

~ If you’re an entrepreneur, do you feel guilty if your client decides to use a credit card or borrowed money to pay you?

~ Do you believe that when someone pays you, they become more poor?

~ Do you try to force money to be delivered in a certain way?

~ Do you say, “My money can only come from a particular channel, such as my business,” when in reality, the majority of your money is flowing in from a source that is entirely separate from the company you’re building?

Some of my clients come to me for entrepreneurial guidance, with the intention to make more money from their businesses. We chat about their ideas, build marketing plans, and I train them to turn strangers into paying clients in 10 days.

But then…they receive money in some unexpected way that may not even have to do with their business (a spouse decides to financially support them, they receive an inheritance, some amazing job offer shows up that they feel very aligned with, someone asks to hire them for a talent that they didn’t even realize could be valuable.)

And yet….they continue to beat themselves up because the money didn’t show up in the exact way they wanted it to show up.

But it SHOWED UP.

It’s time to stop judging the source of your money.

Energetically, when we say, “No, my money can’t come from that source,” what we’re doing is repelling our future income. If we are unappreciative, the flow of our income may slow.

If you find that you’ve been judging the source of your income, a simple step is to begin celebrating every amount of money that comes to you (whether your neighbor paid you to feed their cat, or you just signed on a new client). Express your excitement for the income. It’s also important to suspend your judgment as to how a new client pays to work with you. If they borrow the money to hire you, or if they tap into a retirement fund, it’s their choice, and we should still honor that income as we receive it.

Ava Waits is an inspirational speaker, business mentor, sales trainer, and author of the forthcoming book, A Woman‘sTreasure: Grow A Business Where Making Money Feels Like Bliss. She believes that making money should feel like bliss, and through her work, she provides innovative sales and marketing guidance to entrepreneurs and companies worldwide.

As a speaker, Ava has been interviewed on television and radio, and has been invited around the country to inspire and train audiences at business events, women’s organizations, and financial companies. She has presented at Rick Steves Europe, United Way, the Women’s Day of Empowerment, Mother Earth News, the National Association of Professional Mortgage Women, and many others.

I’ve come right up to my fears in my almost 8-year journey owning a business

~ The fear that I will have absolutely no money

~ The fear that I will be late on a payment for a bill, or won’t be able to afford rent

~ The fear that my credit or debit card will be declined

~ The fear that people will be unhappy with me

~ The fear that I won’t have enough clients

~ The fear that friends won’t like me, because I talk positively about money while they are struggling

Most of these fears manifested during my journey.

And….looking back, they were the most amazing teaching experiences.

All you do is calm down, get smart, and figure it out.

Every one of the fears I had was totally fixable. None of them ended up being as big and scary as I thought they would be.

When I was concerned about paying rent, I found a nearly $400 income opportunity in the same room that I was sitting in. THE SAME ROOM.

When I was scared that I would be late to pay a bill, I discovered an unexpected check in my mailbox.

But here’s what I see over and over again with humans.

When their emotions get in the way, they all of a sudden CAN’T SEE the most simple answer, which is hanging right in front of them.

When the emotions of fear, upset, shame, and frustration completely take over, you stop being able to function properly.

That’s why part of my job is to help you bring yourself into a state of calm bliss so that your emotions don’t blind you to the opportunities, income, and the gorgeous experiences that are immediately available to you.

This is why you’ll often see me practicing the arts of stillness, gracefulness, and elegance. It’s why I will zone out and thoroughly enjoy the daily activities of grocery shopping, sipping tea, and taking walks. It’s why I smile a secret smile in my world of happiness. I am more clear and receptive when my emotions are calmed.

IT’S ALL AN INSIDE JOB.

Master your emotions and your attitude, and you’ll be able to see all of the opportunities that are lingering around you ~ the opportunities that you might be currently blind to. You’ll be able to problem-solve, find your way, find the money you desire, find the clients you are ready for, and do so more swiftly than you ever have.

Ava Waits is an inspirational speaker, business mentor, sales trainer, and author of the forthcoming book, A Woman‘sTreasure: Grow A Business Where Making Money Feels Like Bliss. She believes that making money should feel like bliss, and through her work, she provides innovative sales and marketing guidance to entrepreneurs and companies worldwide.

As a speaker, Ava has been interviewed on television and radio, and has been invited around the country to inspire and train audiences at business events, women’s organizations, and financial companies. She has presented at Rick Steves Europe, United Way, the Women’s Day of Empowerment, Mother Earth News, the National Association of Professional Mortgage Women, and many others.

You’re in a great conversation with a potential client, and it’s clear that they want to hire you. However, when you start speaking about the various costs, their excitement sinks a little bit, and they say: “I can’t afford you.”

Instead of letting the conversation fizzle out, there are actually several powerful questions that you can ask your potential client. These questions are all meant to assist them in finding or creating the money to hire you.

*And, these ideas aren’t pushy at all (because you should never force someone to work with you.)

Ava Waits is an inspirational speaker, business mentor, sales trainer, and author of the forthcoming book, A Woman‘sTreasure: Grow A Business Where Making Money Feels Like Bliss. She believes that making money should feel like bliss, and through her work, she provides innovative sales and marketing guidance to entrepreneurs and companies worldwide.

As a speaker, Ava has been interviewed on television and radio, and has been invited around the country to inspire and train audiences at business events, women’s organizations, and financial companies. She has presented at Rick Steves Europe, United Way, the Women’s Day of Empowerment, Mother Earth News, the National Association of Professional Mortgage Women, and many others.

Sometimes when I return from traveling, I jump back into work right away, without a lot of time for me in between. Instead, I spent the day rearranging my physical environment in various ways, and also creating an internal environment (the way I feel) that is based on leisure and pleasure.

The right kind of environment always seems to lead to more opportunities for fun, friendly interactions, and creating money. (And one of my favorite things is to constantly experiment with making money in ways that feel like bliss.)

~ I spent the first part of the morning baking cinnamon apples, and then listened to a class on Shamanism that Rose Cole was leading ..because I believe in magical things, coincidences, communicating through the dream world, and energy healing.

~ I restocked my refrigerator with everything from pomegranates to cantaloupe, and artichokes to pizza ingredients.

~ I soaked up the heat of the fall sun while eating a delicious and filling afternoon meal.

~ OneRebublic’s new song, “Future Looks Good” was the song I listened to over and over again.

~ I composted all of the flowers in the house that were past their prime, and remade bouquets with the flowers that are still blooming.

~ I scrubbed the toilet (I actually really like scrubbing toilets)

~ We also have a heavy storm approaching Washington State, so it was fun to prepare for a “slumber party weekend” by filling bottles with extra water, buying groceries, gassing up the car, and washing and drying all of my favorite cozy clothes.

So you might be wondering: “Ava, how’s preparing an environment for success working for you so far?”

My answer: I feel calm and fully supported in all ways (financially, through delicious food, and through friendships and family). I received word of more money showing up in my life, and tomorrow, I start working with a new entrepreneurial client. I’m also about to dive into a few weeks of writing my book, A Woman’s Treasure, and am quite excited to be writing in the environment I’ve created.

Ava Waits is an inspirational speaker, business mentor, sales trainer, and author of the forthcoming book, A Woman‘sTreasure: Grow A Business Where Making Money Feels Like Bliss. She believes that making money should feel like bliss, and through her work, she provides innovative sales and marketing guidance to entrepreneurs and companies worldwide.

As a speaker, Ava has been interviewed on television and radio, and has been invited around the country to inspire and train audiences at business events, women’s organizations, and financial companies. She has presented at Rick Steves Europe, United Way, the Women’s Day of Empowerment, Mother Earth News, the National Association of Professional Mortgage Women, and many others.

Once, I was convinced that I needed to fly to Los Angeles to attend a conference that I knew would attract many ideal potential clients.

But….nothing seemed to be working out. The conference organizers didn’t need any more volunteers at the event in exchange for free entry, the money for my flight and hotel didn’t seem to be there, and I was frustrated at how things were unfolding.

Going to Los Angeles did not seem to be the “path of least resistance,” but yet I couldn’t shake the thought from my mind….until this helped me make my decision:

Ava Waits is an inspirational speaker, business mentor, sales trainer, and author of the forthcoming book, A Woman‘sTreasure: Grow A Business Where Making Money Feels Like Bliss. She believes that making money should feel like bliss, and through her work, she provides innovative sales and marketing guidance to entrepreneurs and companies worldwide.

As a speaker, Ava has been interviewed on television and radio, and has been invited around the country to inspire and train audiences at business events, women’s organizations, and financial companies. She has presented at Rick Steves Europe, United Way, the Women’s Day of Empowerment, Mother Earth News, the National Association of Professional Mortgage Women, and many others.

For entrepreneurs who sell services for $30 – $100 an hour, and entrepreneurs who sell individual items that cost under $30

Many of us have been trained to sell services and products in this way, where our clients purchase one item or appointment at a time. That’s how I started out. When I was 11 years old, I crafted jewelry and sold it at summertime festivals. But….it took a lot of time to make the jewelry, set up the booth, and to then sell each individual piece. When I started working in the holistic health field in 2009, many of the people in my industry sold one-time appointments, with the hope (but no guarantee) that their client would return. I gave that a try too.

These days, I’m enamored with a different way of selling – a process where we likely only have to make ONE sale a month, and the income from that ONE sale lets us live a very comfortable life.

Let’s use the example of a cafe, which sells coffee, hot tea, and iced lemonade for the hot summer months. Every single cup of coffee sold is a mini sale, where the barista must engage with a customer, educate them about what’s for sale, and answer questions. Then, hopefully, the customer will react favorably, and purchase something, and then come back for more on another day. A purchase at most cafes ranges from about $3 to $30, depending on if you have guests visiting, or if you want to sip on a fancy blended drink for the afternoon.

But what if that barista or café owner could have just ONE conversation, with one person, that leads to $10,000+ worth of drinks being sold?!

It takes a lot less time to have that one conversation – much quicker than the thousands of mini sales conversations.

This kind of approach (where you focus on connecting to larger contracts) works for all kinds of industries – health and wellness, photography, designers, cleaning services, food providers, floral shops, and many others.

Now, of course there is a place for selling one-off items, like the photographer who sells one photo shoot, or a print at a local fair. Or the health practitioner who hosts a one-time workshop, where they meet several new potential patients who end up sticking around with them for years.

But still…..it’s very intriguing to look at how your business can create an offering for more than $10,000, and how you can sell it through one or two conversations.

It’s a mind shift. You’ll have to think a bit differently, and you also need to modify the structure that you use to deliver your products or services. If you’d like to learn more, I’m going to be teaching about this at my next Making Money Feels Like Bliss workshop for entrepreneurs.

**If you have friends who might find this post and the café example helpful, please share it with them!

Ava Waits is an inspirational speaker, business mentor, sales trainer, and author of the forthcoming book, A Woman‘sTreasure: Grow A Business Where Making Money Feels Like Bliss. She believes that making money should feel like bliss, and through her work, she provides innovative sales and marketing guidance to entrepreneurs and companies worldwide.

As a speaker, Ava has been interviewed on television and radio, and has been invited around the country to inspire and train audiences at business events, women’s organizations, and financial companies. She has presented at Rick Steves Europe, United Way, the Women’s Day of Empowerment, Mother Earth News, the National Association of Professional Mortgage Women, and many others.

I have a slightly sunburnt nose, after a whole day out on the boat. My boyfriend and I celebrated 9 years together with a trip up to Seattle on the water. We went past the houseboats and University of Washington campus, stopped for fish, fries, and a Caesar salad at Ivar’s (I was too hungry to take a photo), and then jetted across the water to waterfront Kirkland. This trip included so many of the things I love – exploring new areas, staring at waterfront homes, visiting new cafes, and riding roller coasters (that’s what it feels like to me every time we hit big waves).

I found myself being very pulled to the big homes with the immaculate lawns and waterfront views, especially those on the Eastern side of Seattle, and Mercer Island. It’s not that I want to own one (I keep my life very mobile, so that I can travel on short notice), but I felt a pull to be in the presence of these beautiful structures.

It made me think about many of the possible thoughts that could go through a person’s mind when they stare at a side of an Island where BILLIONS of dollars worth of houses sit on their foundations:

1. “I’ll never be able to afford to live in one of those homes, because it costs so much. I’m jealous of rich people. It’s unfair that they get to live in that home, and I don’t.”

Or….

2. “Each of those homes provides a lot of monetary opportunities. Infact, money streams through each house every day. The people who built these houses were paid, and so are the gardeners who sculpt the gorgeous lawns, the housekeepers and cleaners, and the people who manufacture the parts to maintain the house after it’s been constructed.

The people who live in these homes likely have plenty of money to hire entrepreneurs for services such as health and nutritional guidance, counseling, coaching, dance lessons, pet care, house sitting, and financial services. These hillsides of homes represent endless opportunities for entrepreneurs.”

Or….

3. (This is the thought that I have had most recently) “There is an aspect of this lifestyle, particularly the beauty of high-end homes, which I want more of in my life. This desire makes me think about how can I spend more time in homes like these. Also, how can I bring the qualities of these homes into my own living environment?

I think it’s time to start constructing a tea light garden in my back yard, and to invest in building my own oasis….”

Ava Waits is an inspirational speaker, business mentor, sales trainer, and author of the forthcoming book, A Woman‘sTreasure: Grow A Business Where Making Money Feels Like Bliss. She believes that making money should feel like bliss, and through her work, she provides innovative sales and marketing guidance to entrepreneurs and companies worldwide.

As a speaker, Ava has been interviewed on television and radio, and has been invited around the country to inspire and train audiences at business events, women’s organizations, and financial companies. She has presented at Rick Steves Europe, United Way, the Women’s Day of Empowerment, Mother Earth News, the National Association of Professional Mortgage Women, and many others.